1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a multi-tenant software as a service (SaaS) application or cloud computing service that manages and monitors the use of other SaaS applications or cloud computing services via a centralized common connection and database framework.
2. Description of the Related Art
SaaS refers to a software application delivery model where a software vendor develops a web-native software application and hosts and operates the application for use by its customers over the Internet. SaaS applications are an increasingly popular model for providing software functionality as it is economical in terms of both cost and customer hardware resources. As SaaS applications and services become more readily available, it is evident that more corporate entities, in particular, will adopt these services as a replacement for on-premise solutions.
These SaaS services are also referred to as cloud computing services. These cloud computing services may relate to applications such as email, financial systems, accounting, bookkeeping and others. The challenge related to such cloud computing services is that they are offered by different entities spread across the Internet. Thus, as the availability of cloud computing services multiply, the administrative overhead needed to monitor and manage these services will also multiply. Thus, it is desirable to reduce the time and effort required for the administrative overhead needed to monitor and manage these SaaS applications or cloud computing services.